Delaware Symphony Orchestra appoints Michelle Di Russo as first female director

From Philly and the Pa. suburbs to South Jersey and Delaware, what would you like WHYY News to cover? Let us know!

The Delaware Symphony Orchestra is beginning a new era in its 120th season with a historic first.

Michelle Di Russo has been named the orchestra’s new music director, following an international search that began in 2023. She is the first woman in the orchestra’s history to hold the role.

“Winning your first position as music director, as a conductor in general, it’s the most exciting thing,” Di Russo said. “It’s something you’ve been working towards for years, right? And for it to be a place like Delaware and with the Delaware Symphony and having been there, connected with the community and worked with the orchestra, I know it sounds too good to be true, but it is the perfect fit for me.”

Di Russo emerged as a standout among four finalists who appeared during the DSO’s 2024 and 2025 season. The orchestra’s musicians, board members, staff and community were all part of the decision-making process.

“Michelle Di Russo was the unanimous choice of both the search committee and our board,” said J.C. Barker, the orchestra’s chief executive officer, in a statement. “We are thrilled to welcome her as we look to a bold new chapter and beyond.”

The appointment is not just a personal milestone — it marks a breakthrough for representation in classical music in Delaware.

“I think it’s always exciting to be the first one to break those glass ceilings slowly,” Di Russo said. “It’s also exciting to know that the community and the musicians and the organization, everyone is ready for it as well. It just makes me feel very welcome and very excited to help them go into this new path.”

She began her career in the arts not as a conductor but as a performer. In her native Argentina, she worked in musical theater as a dancer and singer before a final exam unexpectedly steered her in a new direction.

“I really didn’t know that was my path,” she said. “But when I conducted the orchestra for the first time… there’s this energy. I don’t know, I just can’t describe it. It just really ignited passion in me and I just knew that that was the path I needed to take on.”